Introducing Konrad the Cognitive Panda

Konrad is a scientifically inclined panda. He especially likes numbers. Give him a sufficiently tricky mathematical problem and he’ll be entertained for hours.

Unusually enough, the main problem with Konrad was figuring out a suitable adjective for his logical nature. Intelligent? Smart? Cogent? Cerebral? Perspicacious?

As I may have mentioned before, while I work on a design I have many hours of knitting when my hands are busy but my brain is idle. Often my mind begins to create a story for the creature I'm designing, so that at the end the complete design also includes a personality. It's important to me that the adjective, if there is one, fits the creature I have made.

For Konrad, many, many alternatives were found with the help of a thesaurus and my walking dictionary, Mr Morrgan, but none of them seemed a perfect fit. Then eventually Mr Morrgan suggested "cognitive" and everything fell into place. Konrad finally had the right word to describe him!

Konrad is available as a pattern via Ravelry (or click here to buy now - no Ravelry account needed), Craftsy and from my Etsy shop.

Want to see more creature introductions?

A Peek at the Balcony

Already past midsummer and I haven't posted any photos of the balcony garden? Tsk. I'm getting old and slow.

This is not because I'd be unhappy with it for some reason; quite the opposite. I think this is my favourite flower box arrangement yet! Marigolds, lobelias and pansies cover the edges, while a couple of miniature sunflowers are growing in the middle (I grew them from seeds myself, so they're a bit slower to bloom than the rest).

Yes, pansies! This is the first time ever they've survived more than a couple of weeks on our hot and windy balcony. I think the secret was perfect timing with the planting (early enough for them to properly take root before the hot days) and a bit of luck with the weather.

The table basket is looking pretty nice this year too! The stonecrop or Sedum on the left is one that survived winter, whereas the one on the right is a new acquaintance. The leaves on the new one are decorative enough on their own, but I'm also curious to see what the flowers are like. Not long now!

An Afternoon in the Woods

Last Sunday the weather was incredible - sunny, warm, barely a cloud in the sky. In other words, the perfect day to spend outdoors! Mr Morrgan and I prepared a picnic, then out we went.

One bus ride later we found ourselves by a sandy beach. After a much needed ice cream (it was HOT) and dipping our toes in the refreshing water, we headed off along one of the nature trails, wandering along the water's edge.

Eventually the trail lead deeper into the woods. Many fine trees were admired along the way and an equally fine picnic was had once we found a suitable spot.

We ended up spending the whole afternoon exploring the nature trails. Not a bad way to spend a day! =)